Stolen Wallet, Now What?

Hopefully, this doesn't happen to you...or to me either. But, as with anything else, it's best to be prepared. I've never been robbed before, but my grandmother...yes, my 84 year old grandmother, was robbed a few years ago, and she's still recovering from it...both financially and emotionally. There are some things you can do now to avert the "panic mode" and to alleviate some of the stress involved should you misplace, lose or God forbid, get robbed of your wallet!

Get prepared ahead of time:

• Follow the advice in "What's in Your Wallet?"; keep a record of everything in your wallet and the phone numbers you need to call should your accounts be compromised

• Some things to NEVER keep in your wallet

• Anything with your SSN on it; if your driver's license has your SSN (some states and insurance cards still do), you have the option of calling the issuer and getting it changed to another number
• Your business cards, if you have any (you don't want a thief to know where you work too!)
  

If your wallet should disappear (yes, you'll be ready):

• Call your bank first (if you have a bankcard in your wallet)

• Since you already have a list of phone numbers for your credit cards listed in another place (your car, computer or at home) from the article "What's In Your Wallet?"; call them and let them know what happened; get new cards issued to you
  

• Call each of the credit reporting agencies and place a fraud alert on your name (let them know your wallet was stolen); be sure to get a free copy of your credit report (you can get a free report if you put a fraud alert on your account)
  
• Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; http://www.equifax.com/; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374- 0241
• Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); http://www.experian.com/; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013
• TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; http://www.transunion.com/; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

• File a police report (the police may or may not be able to find out who stole your wallet but more importantly, you will have proof to show creditors and those you do business with, should any accounts be compromised)

• Do file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to help them fight identity theft

• Keep track (on paper) of who you talked to and when, when calling your banks and credit card companies (you want a paper trail should something go even more wrong); some folks even follow up with certified letters to their credit card companies
  

Now that you know ahead of time what needs to be done, you can consider yourself well prepared. What do you do to stay prepared?

Photo courtesy of coolclips.com